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Election 2012: Three Open Letters

On the occasion of Barack Obama’s reelection to the presidency of the United States, I would like to write an open letter to three different folks.

Dear Disappointed Romney Supporter,

If you are the average Romney supporter who honestly thought he was the better candidate, voted for him, and is disappointed that he lost, this letter is not directed at you. If you are the unusual Romney supporter who thinks his loss signals the coming of the Apocalypse, the end of civilization as we know it, and a head-first dive into an abyss of socialism, then I’m talking to you. Unfortunately you have fed yourself a steady diet of Fox News, The Blaze, Daily Caller and for dessert, a good helping of World Net Daily. These fringe outposts on the information highway have led you to distrust mainstream media. And that my friends is the major difference between the ultra-liberal MSNBC and the heretofore mentioned outlets. MSNBC doesn’t stray too far off the trail set by the main stream media (ABC, CBS, NBC, The New York Times, The Washington Post). There is a reason why mainstream media is mainstream. They cover real news, with real sources. They have standards such that they don’t show exposé videos designed to bring down organizations (e.g. ACORN). They’re patient. They are willing to wait until a story fleshes out sufficiently with vetted sources before covering it (e.g. Benghazi). Is the mainstream media perfect? Of course not. Are they immune to bias? Without doubt, they are not. But if you need evidence that your fringe news sources are warped and are warping your mind, look at the behavior at Fox News on election night.

Putting The Faux in Fox News

When the vote counters at Fox News called Ohio for Obama, one of Fox’s analysts went batcrap crazy. Karl Rove begged his network, live and on the air, to reconsider their call. Never in the history of television has an on-air correspondent disagreed with his own network’s election night call. Why would Rove be so adamant? He had skin in the game, that’s why. Lots of skin … skin of the green variety. Via Crossroads GPS, his super-pac, Karl had dropped a ton of money into putting an end to Barack Obama’s political career. Yet the so-called fair and balanced network turns to him for analysis. Flashback four years ago when MSNBC discovered that on-air talent Keith Olbermann had contributed to a political campaign. All hell broke loose. Not on Fox though. No problem on Fox. And so, on election night we got to see Karl basically say “Hey! I’ve got big money riding on this! You can’t give Obama Ohio and the election!” All this while the celebration in Chicago is broadcast on split screen. It was a pathetic display. But Karl represents you. the disappointed Romney voter who lives in an alternate reality.

You are despondent and I understand why. Thanks to Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity, you live in a world where up is down and right is always right and left is always wrong. You’ve been brainwashed and Tuesday night you got water-boarded by reality. It was torture. But you’re alive my friends. You got through it. Now just accept that you’ve been lied to, and move on.

Dear Republican Party,

The most important “teaching moment” for you should be not that your candidate Mitt Romney lost but that you failed to take over the Senate, a goal that was completely realistic. We can look at three seats that were within reach and see easily why you lost them. Your candidates in Indiana and Missouri said really stupid stuff about rape. Your candidate in Massachusetts attacked his opponent’s self-professed heritage thinking that heritage could be disproven just by “looking at her”. These examples of pure foolishness were a trap door that the left could easily exploit. The rape comments were not simply dumb, they showed a disrespect for women not seen on the campaign trail in 25 years. They focused like a laser beam on your new meme that rape is not rape, this notion that lots of women fake it. Hell, when it comes to abortion your Vice Presidential candidate suggested that the health of the mother exception was wide enough to drive a truck through. Then you expect women to vote for you. The silliness over Warren’s ethnic background shined a light on your resentment of equal opportunity programs and the idea that traditionally oppressed minorities should be proactively recruited. Sure you griped that you felt Warren took advantage of these programs but let’s be honest. You don’t like the programs in the first place and that’s what a lot of minorities heard behind your Fauxahontas outrage.

Here is some free advice to my Republican friends. First, accept Roe v. Wade as probably the best compromise solution we will ever have on the issue of abortion. Accept it and move on. Second, accept the fact that some folks want a life-long partnership (including sex) with folks of their own gender. Gay folks aren’t going away. Republicans. you LIKE marriage. You think it is stabilizing. So let your gay brothers and sisters get the same benefits from the institution that you enjoy. You’re not gong to win this anti-gay battle. Two states, not by judicial decree, but by popular vote, legalized gay marriage. The tide is not only turning … it has turned. Accept it and move on. Third and finally, did you notice the first two bits of advice used the word “accept”? Yeah … be more accepting. Widen your tent. If you learned anything from this election it should be that you can’t win on the white male vote anymore. Hispanics supported Obama to the tune of 71%. Could that have anything to do with all the talk of self-deportation? There are just too many “other” types of people out there and if you go out of your way to insult and alienate them, you will stop winning elections.

Dear Mr. President,

Our elections are a funny thing. From the electoral college perspective, most folks would say you won by a landslide with more than 300 electoral votes. But let’s be honest here. Only about 2 million votes separated you from Mitt Romney, about 2% or so of the electorate. You won just over half the States. This was no Ronald Reagan 49 state smack-down. There are a bus load of people for all sorts of reasons who did not want you to have a second term. Your response should not be “to hell with them”. So, please, tackle jobs and the deficit and be hands on about it. This business of throwing semi-formed ideas at a polarized Congress and expecting progress is not going to work. You have invited the legislative leaders to the White House next week. That’s a good start. Don’t stop there. Stay in the game. I know you don’t have the leverage of an LBJ who had years of relationships to draw on but that’s no excuse. You’ve got to forge relationships. I see that some pundits have already voiced my idea (yes I thought of it first!) that you appoint Mitt Romney to your new Secretary of Business position. Damn man, talk about team of rivals! We all know what you meant by Secretary of Business. It wasn’t some new bureaucracy as Mitt suggested on the campaign trail. It’s meant to consolidate several organizations like HUD and SBA under one accountable leader. Put Mitt in charge of it and let him be the businessman he’s proven he can be. A much better use of his talents than POTUS.

You don’t have another term at stake here, Mr. President. You have your legacy. It’s a much bigger game this time.

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225 thoughts on “Election 2012: Three Open Letters”

I am tired because we just got home after loading bricks and furnature.

I disagree with your chararacterisation of Fox and other news sources. As I and others have demonstrated, the mainstream media is biased and while more subtantive on occasion they neglect or ignore important stories like Benghazi., I am not the only one here to have successfully debunked the mainstream’s impartiality.

For example, the New York Times while criticizing MSNBC and Fox for bias observed that at least Fox forced the other networks to report on Benghazi,

Ole! That’s one way to start a charge. Watch out for the horns. :shock:

I hope we can take this back to community and dump this imperial shroud, now that it’s feeling securely established for another four years. The undertow showed some states exercising rights over the fed. One by one. Vive la difference!

One of your best Rutherford. I see your suggestion: ” I see that some pundits have already voiced my idea (yes I thought of it first!) that you appoint Mitt Romney to your new Secretary of Business position.” I support it, but for a entirely different reason, I still want to see Mitt’s tax records. For that reason alone, we can all be certain, he will respectfully decline the appointment.

Mitt’s tax records are really not anyone’s business now that he’s not POTUS potential. You want to post yours? Sorry, they may have been relevant before Nov 6, but not now. I say move on. Let’s see if we can’t make some definite budget cuts and throw off this imperialist crap and focus on helping ourselves domestically. How about firing the Fed and bailing on their pretend money. Harry Reid, find your cajones. That’s your guy, Newt. Let’s see him man up.

Really interesting post and well written. Not sure about the Romney suggestion, if only because cabinet members are expected to represent the president’s agenda, and I doubt Romney is willing to do such a thing.

Didn’t even bother to read it besides the title. Gloat while you can. Don’t care as it was expected. Rutherford’s advice is never worth the page it is written on. And Pfesser thinks I’m depressed about the election? Not depression – amazed and dumbfounded.

Not depressed or demoralized or defeated. Astounded that we have become a nation of imbeciles. Unless they ram through some way to start taxing net worth, as far as finances, the election will not negatively affect me financially much – at least not that I can see. My daughter will soon be a doctor and possibly doctor #2 on the way. My wife and I can barter for care, if necessary.

I worry about the debt we as a nation are leaving our children, but let the Left bear the brunt of the disdain and the pain when the dollar collapses. Blame George Bush all you wish, even let the majority believe it – it won’t stop the nosedive, that fact immutable and imminent.

I pray Mitch McConnell and John Boehner get out of the way and let Barack Obama call every shot from here on out – including social issues. By all means, blacks and Latinos – abort as frequently as possible. I will no longer debate you of that deviancy. My position will be Pfesser’s opinion – your bastard children are a cost and nothing more. You liberals mean nothing to me now after these last two years of once again character assassination, false accusation, and your rank propaganda. And I mean that sincerely.

No more debate about Obamacare, or debt, or Iran. It is time for the Left to live with its decisions and associated consequences. As I said before, to hell with PACS. Start our own media organization to fight the corruption. Benghazi was the last straw for me.

Contrary to Rutherford’s constant asinine and unfounded of assertions about FOX, FOX and WSJ come as close to real news as is available and the number of people viewing and reading proves that beyond doubt; and even they are folding tent, as they bring on fools and hucksters like Juan Williams and Geraldo Rivera – two men whose own personal lives are a monument to failure. I have turned the TV off of talking heads and haven’t missed it a bit.

But these next four years may destroy a lot of other people that don’t have the luxury of protected assets. I have prepared myself to the best of my abilities to deal with the mob.

It’s not for my wishes of Barack Obama to fail – that is over. It’s for the people who voted for Barack Obama, who traffic in lies, who divide our country, who live and think like animals, who are without the ability to think critically and completely void of Socratic debate skills, who justify bad behavior and result to other bad behavior – the definition of non sequitur; those turn a blind eye to real evil and double standard.

So I will end my stay here stating this for record, not to return until the consequences rear their ugly head. And I will rub your collective noses in it when the time comes using this blog as your stupidity.

It is not our message that is wrong. Truth is never wrong. The methodology and delivery may need to be fixed, but the message is sound.

No matter how long this takes, and I only pray I am around to see truth win out, I know this for a fact. The Democratic Party and those who support Barack Obama will be remembered as America’s version of the Bolsheviks.

For 70 years, the Bolshevik ideology ruled Russia. It took 70 years for the entire system to collapse. But collapse it did.

His legacy? Who gives a shit about his legacy. And it’s not a game either. It’s about people hurting and our debt growing exponentially. End of story, dude. It’s about America. Not your hobby.

So I take it you think we are overreacting when it comes to the national debt and the amount of money spent last term. Am I right? Is the national debt not a big deal or at least nowhere near the deal we make it out to be? If so, fair enough, tell me why I’m over reacting. Rutherford, is this sustainable?

Your buddy Thor thinks GDP will naturally declaw the debt. He keeps telling me it will happen. Where is this unprecedented growth gong to cme from? A new Marshall Plan after World War 3?

Should I be patient? Should I just trust him because…uh…he trusts Obama? Is that it? Should I just trust…dare I say, have blind faith?

What expectations should I have? Should I have expectations? Do you have any? Is Obama above expectations?

Your friend Newt seems to think everything is kosher right now?

I am conquered man. My ideals were rejected. Tell me what to do Rutherford.

You can only write about how weird we are for so long. And the Romeny election is history. You can only make fun of us for so long. Everytime the Republicans lose its a lecture on what Republicans should do. Last time it was the way of the Whigs….followed by the biggest political stampede in American history if we account for state Congress seats.

Really interesting post and well written. Not sure about the Romney suggestion …

Eric, thanks for visiting the blog and for the compliment. Coming from a professional writer, that means a lot to me.

Your comment on Romney is well taken. It would be an interesting exercise to see if Obama’s agenda of job creation could be furthered by Romney. Romney is not ideological (one of the reasons he never gained the trust of hardcore conservatives) so he might be able to serve the President’s goals. In my “political fantasy football” league, this pairing would be something to watch.

Rabbit our debt is out of control. No one, including Barack Obama would say otherwise. I have always given full disclosure that I’m no expert on economics. I know enough to know there are two warring religions on the subject, those who follow Keynes and those who follow Hayek. And that is no doubt a gross oversimplification.

To me, we have a chicken/egg situation. Do we put the debt and deficit on the back burner and focus like a laser on job creation and improving our economy, at which point, we can then talk about spending cuts and get the debt under control. OR do we attack the debt, neglecting job creation, not putting the economy on steroids, and see continued unemployment and despair? I’ve had this very discussion with Alfie who believes debt comes first followed by job creation. I see it the other way. I am not hearing success stories from European austerity programs. If you are, then please enlighten me.

His legacy? Who gives a shit about his legacy. And it’s not a game either. It’s about people hurting and our debt growing exponentially. End of story, dude. It’s about America. Not your hobby.

Oh Rabbit …. please save the melodrama. You know damn well every President is concerned about his legacy. And my point was that with reelection no longer an issue, the only selfish driver left IS his legacy. Also, I didn’t use “game” to trivialize what is at stake.

I hate to let you in on this but caring about America is not the exclusive territory of conservatives. How many elections do you need to lose before you stop insulting liberals? The moderates don’t like the tone.

Rutherford, i agree, if he is normal, Obama is thinking about his legacy.

Obamacare won’t cut it. It is already proving to be a perncious blight on our economy, and once fully evolved, it will shorten some people’s life spans. Obama may be so self deluded he cannot change, but I believe you are right that he might conquer his instincts sufficiently to negotiate and compromise. I wouldn’t bet on it, but it is a possibility.

The way of Argentina is another. 700,000 people protested against the president last weekend–the largest demonstration in ten years.

You cannot refute facts. The fact is that the mainstream media is polluted with bias and is no longer a trustworthy source of important news interpretation.

I watched Karl Rove too. you forgot to mention he is not a journalist. He is a political strategist as his Democratic counterpart on the show is.Rove was not represented as anything other than that. We don’t have cable, so I have never seen him talk if he has a program on Fox. What I saw on election night was a man interpreting the election from his prospective as the Democrat did.

One good thing to come from this election is that the press has forsaken any semblance of nonpartisanship. They with few exceptions, are openly pro Democrat. Therefore, we need Fox to add prospective from the other side.

Newt bragged about you and some others borrowing her notion that Romney should be appointed to the new government. I am bragging too. I noticed you mentioned Obama’s last term places few constraints on his policies because since it is his last term, he is more free from catering to various pressure groups. I agree, hence my lame duck characterisation.

I agree with Tex and some others. This will send us onto another rececesion and as in Argentina, people will slowly wake up to what they have done to themselves. It is the only effective cure to addiction. I don’t pity the folks who are unprepared, because they brought it onto themselves.

Comment 14 shows how profoundly ignorant Rutherford is, yet he still looks down on everyone like he knows everything. I cannot be bothered to read his post until such time he can respond to people without all the petty personal attacks. If its on point, great go for it, if it is per the usual to try and explain to someone how stupid they are, cut it out.

That said, the problem with the Dimocrats is that they believe in cultural relativism. IF they can just get enough people to side with them, then they can change what is right or wrong. This is how they fool people into believing things that any thinking person would reject out of hand. These are dishonest people and unfortunately the majority are stupid enough to buy the argument, as our election results proved out.

As for working together, I think it is laughable to have Reid say he will stonewall everything Mitt wants to do if elected and his senior adviser saying their will be hell to pay for those who opposed us, then tell us to work together.

p.s. Obama even considering Romney tells me a few things. That Obama knows who the better and more qualified man is, and that as many of us suspected, Obama never had a plan, and needs Romney to bail him out.

The only solution are selfless leaders who are willing to be hated. Those willing to lose elections. And yes, sacrifice their legacy.

Rutherford always cracks me up. He points to austerity in Europe and says, “those guys don’t seem to enjoy it much”. No shit?

There is no way out of this without terrible hurt and pain.

Massive cuts.

I once took oxycodone for two months streight after a knee surgery. High has fuck. After popping my last two, and the script was cashed, I had to make a choice. Cop more off the street. Or lay on my couch shivering in the fetal position for two days. Nothing but cold sweat. I chose the couch.

If guys gave their life in places like Normandy, I suppose Republicans and Democrats could forgo their ” legacy”.

A recession is guaranteed. Lets have one that helps our children out in the long run.

Nice post, R. Thoughtful and right on the money, IMHO. The ReBiblicans are going to have to spend some time in the desert, contemplating their navels and their misspent life before they can come to God. Hope it happens in my lifetime.

Also nice retort on “Don’t even bother to read beyond the title.” Don’t waste time on nonsense – it just encourages it.

A few days ago, McCain said he knew his campaign was losing, he could read polls, but there was still that little bit of hope he felt once in a while towards the end. But all reports say, Romney and his entire team were dumbfound and shocked when it became evident (like when Ohio was called for Obama) that he lost. Their perception throughout the entire campaign was 180 degrees from reality. Why? It had to be because of their limited news source and own polling. That alone should let anyone know, Fox News is GOP propaganda, not news. I actually feel sorry for Romney, Ryan, and their families learning the true facts that way. If you cannot stand watching and reading other news sources, tell yourself, you are doing opposition research. It works for me.

Nothing ever of substance from you Newt. Yes, they were wrong. Whats so bad about thinking you can win an election and offering voters another option? I don’t get you. I’ve never once read anything from you in which you talk about anything other then campaign politics. Is that it with you. 48% of the popular vote and you mock him? You are a very boring hollow person

Also nice retort on “Don’t even bother to read beyond the title.” Don’t waste time on nonsense – it just encourages it.

Do you really want to make the case that Rutherford offers equitable arguments? That he gives other people’s thoughts due consideration and uses honest arguments? Rutherford encourages this activity by dismissing good arguments out of hand. The saying treat others as you wish to be treated comes to mind.

You’re right, Newt. I think it is important to seek sources from all perspectives to ‘get’ the complete picture. It’s crazy to not read something because you disagree with the view expressed or the person expressing it. Only if your ideology is weak does it become threatening, and only so if you aren’t willing to modify your own perceptions. I think it is critical to discerning truth.

It is sometimes akin to reading your opponent’s playbook. Know your enemy, basically. It gives one the ability to decode certain points that are generally disseminated among the ranks.

Some of these folks are too well insulated or isolated from the common reality that the rest of the world operates within.

Fact: Romney was in a bubble throughout his campaign, he was fed information by his staff based upon their limited access to solid news. Hey, I’m not complaining, it worked out for our side. It explained so many things. I often wondered, why he didn’t do this and didn’t do that at critical times during the campaign. Yes, I talk about the campaign, I happen to enjoy campaigns.

“Do you really want to make the case that Rutherford offers equitable arguments? That he gives other people’s thoughts due consideration and uses honest arguments? Rutherford encourages this activity by dismissing good arguments out of hand. The saying treat others as you wish to be treated comes to mind.”

Noah, I’m going to level with you. I will be the first to say that a lot of what R believes makes no sense to me; I assume his positions are overwhelmingly informed by his life experiences, because I don’t get it at all. But having said that, I consider what I say to him carefully, because – while I BELIEVE I am more objective than he is, I have no way of being absolutely sure that my opinions are right and his are wrong. It’s a matter of respect.

To my observation, R is like us all – he gets pissed off and lets fly sometimes, and sometimes plays games, but in general he honestly expresses his opinion, and does so with pretty good respect – particularly in view of how much shit he takes for it. When he is attacked, he responds; what do you expect him to do, kiss the hand that slaps him across the mouth? Jeez…..

On the other hand, I think he gets very little respect in return – particularly from Tex, and from you. If either of you disagrees with him, instead of saying his IDEAS are FOS, you start in on him personally – his intelligence, his motivations, his WIFE, his disabilities. It is boring, frustrating, unproductive and derails any decent conversation – and quite frankly, that kind of shit brings out the predator in me – hence my penchant for expressing that frustration by occasionally stimulating Tex’s ventricular arrhythmias just for entertainment.

It is precisely that kind of attitude that got your candidate beaten, Noah. People don’t like assholes; they don’t like people who attack them or call them stupid or dishonest; they don’t like people who try to run their lives for them and get aggressive when they resist. No, I disagree with Rutherford probably 95% of the time, but that does not mean I don’t respect him as a man. Try it. It will change your life.

You nailed it Newt. Several of those folks worked on McCain’s campaign and one trashed Sarah Palin afterword. Rupert Murdoc and others said Romney should clean house last June, but he didn’t listen. He should have.

James, I happen to read this article earlier today.http://uk.reuters.com/article/2012/11/10/uk-usa-libya-pentagon-idUKBRE8A903X20121110
We already know more than it was ever intended for us to know, the two former Seals were contracted to the CIA. That agency prefers even in death, that intelligence people’s cover remain intact. But then their stars go on the wall at Langley (you have all seen the actual wall and the main lobby in many movies), there will still be no names.

A most glaring feature is Frank Rich’s own fantacy land. Romney lied and obfuscated at times, but Obama was truly mendacious. Obama won on a poor record by demonizing Romney and defining him as an uncaring, greedy rich man. Romney was unable to countermand the image they created of him until the first debate.

Obama and his allies are living in their own bubble, and when it bursts they will be as shocked as Romney.

And they never will. On three different occasions, I have visited CIA headquarters, I was accompanied everywhere, couldn’t even go to the restroom by myself. The third time I was there, I was introduced to several people, as soon as I and my ‘host’ moved a way from the group, I said to my ‘host,’ when you introduced that last woman you forgot to mention her name. My ‘host’ said, that was no oversight, she is covert. I would have never guessed.

PF, we agree about 60% of the time. James and I about 80% of the time. Tex and I about 90% of the time. All three of you have a different take on things. All three of you have very different styles to argue. Yet despite that I like and respect all of you very much.

The reason is no one could ever say you all don’t from the heart, and saying exactly what you think. Each of you have reasons why you believe what you say and you are not shy or need to be goaded into saying why. Each of you are willing to go beyond your initial statements and explain your point of view, ie to have a conversation. And for the most part, all are willing to step up and admit when you are wrong.

Rutherford, more often than not, fails on each of these points on a regular basis, and it is the main reason in my opinion he gets so much crap. I don’t care if he is Black or crippled or poor. I don’t care if he lives off SSI & food-stamps, his mind is perfectly as capable as anyone else, and the best compliment I can give him is to hold him as accountable as I would anyone else. Respect gets respect. When he takes a dishonest path, its an insult. You get what you give.

Rutherford – I have been a lurker for sometime. I enjoy your blog because you are not a gung-ho Democrat. You are not afraid criticize the Democratic Party or praise the Republican Party, IMO. You allow those with opposing views to express themselves freely. It is interesting to hear and/or attempt to understand the opinions of others who see differently than I.

However, I noticed there are some on this blog who are absolutely positively beyond the shadow of a doubt convinced they are correct in their thinking. With that attitude there is no room for any real discussion. They attack those with opposing views with a vengeance that is beyond rational or sane. The lack of respect shown to the opposition but more importantly…to you the blog owner is beyond my words or understanding.

I believe there are more of us who enjoy your blog but will not venture into this hell hole. I commend you for patience and wish you well if you continue with the blog.

Nobody bur me cares, but the Weather Channel’s web site is naming the next storm Bruno. Right now, it is 78 with southerly wind gusting to over 40 MPH. We may have severe thunderstorms as the cold front passes and it could be snowing by midnight.Such a dramatic change in several hours is uncommon even for us.

I agree that the Republicans are in for a time of self-examination, but I wonder if it will happen. In the past few days, I’ve been hearing my conservative friends dismiss large swaths of the populace as stupid and idiots and on welfare…which is not exactly the way to help themselves in future elections. That said, once the sour grapes emotions calm down a bit, maybe some more reasoned analysis will happen. Personally, I find the “it’s the end of the world!” drama to be highly entertaining :)

eurobrat, you will find most Conservatives tend to stick to what they consider to be right or wrong, despite what others think. We dismiss the notion of cultural relativism and we do not tend to conform just because the majority says we should.

Eurobrat, I don’t know if the Republicans are capable of successful soul searching either. No sour grapes from me. The fact is many people who voted for Obama ARE ignorant. Obviously it is impolitic for politicians to say it, but I am not a politician.

The end of the United States as we knew it has already begun. That too is obvious to anyone who flys or has been jobless for years. I hope I am wrong, but I don’t think our leaders have to will to do what needs to be done.

George Entwistle just resigned from the BBC over the Jimmy Savile sex scandal. General Paetraus has also after his own sex misadventure.. Both cited a sense of honor. Its too bad more of our leaders don’t exhibit a strong belief in right and wrong.

Hi Eurobrat, I think at the moment there is a painful grieving process they have to go through. The amazing thing is they seem to have been actually ‘in love’ with Romney and Ryan. I’ve always heard, Dems fall in love with their candidate and Reps fall in line. Do any of you on the Right remember back to when you wanted any candidate, any at all besides Romney? Michelle? Herman? Rick? Newt? The other Rick?

It is still 72 with a south wind gusting to over 40 MPH. We are near a thunderstorm warning until 11PM A squall line is about fifty miles west of us, and it is moving east at 50 to 65 MPH. The closest warning is a county west of us. the thunderstorms are dropping warning level hail and pulling down some of the 120 MPH jet overhead. Temperatures rapidly fall to the twenties with down to 1/4mile visibility in snow and blowing snow in west and north central Nebraska..

We should get some snow and sleet after midnight, but sadly I doubt there will be enough for me to ski on. Bismark, ND could get 8 to 15 inches of snow and that much has already fallen on Williston in the oil fields.

It will be an interesting night. I am now leaving to check the lightning.

I have to admit, as presidential acceptance speeches go, Obama’s acceptance speech was impressive. It was emotionally provocative (for Americans and non-Americans alike). It was full of hope, calls to action and the collective responsibility of “we the people”. It was all about pumping popular pride in the great United States of America, as the greatest nation on earth. It pushed all the right emotional buttons for Americans and reminded them about everything they have been programmed to believe, since childhood, about the country they live in. It was all about the American dream and the American myth. Obama claimed he has “never been more hopeful about our future, never been more hopeful about America” and proclaimed that “the best is yet to come.” In short, it was a bunch of jingoistic nonsense that flew in the face of the reality of life in the USA and what it has done and continues to do to the rest of the world.

I have to agree with Joe Quinn’s assessment, though I did not listen to O’s acceptance speech. O does have the speech thingie down. But it’s O sweet nothings. Ear candy for the addicted. The saying part isn’t the problem here, it’s the follow-through. Then Joe goes on to discuss American exceptionalism, colonialism, and the latest Bengazi twists. Interesting read.

You refuse to be accountable, or to hold those who represent you accountable.

You’re irresponsible.

What is ultimately sad is that you knowingly lie to yourself with the hope that the lie will become truth. NBC never talked about Fast & Furious, so I guess it never happened. None of you vaulted “mainstream news” are talking about Benghazi either, I guess that didn’t happened too.

Have you been paying attention to all the recent announcements of layoffs- all a direct result of the election. There’s gonna be a lot more of to come.

You’re weak. Mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally… You think you’ve won in this election, but we’ve all lost. What’s more, you hurt your daughter and my boys and every other child in this nation who have to carry the load you’ve swung on their backs. Math major my ass. If you knew anything about math you’d know how dire our economic situation is right now, but that would require holding yourself and your representatives accountable. That would require the fortitude to admit when you were wrong and that a new course was necessary.

You’re gonna blow this post off and go on as usual, relying on fed strength and good will of folks like me who just have to shoulder the load while you free ride along. Fine, enjoy you delusions at the expense of others.

Republicans made real nice grounds with the young vote. 10 percent more.

Young people should be the target. Courting the black vote is futile. As a group, they are so far gone, so devoured by dependency, they will never vote for a party that gives lip service to reducing hand outs. Never. They are utterly broken.

But young people? If they ever wake up, armed with social media and livid over the taxation without representation that they have endured, look out. At work, when I show them the debt already on their head (I make no political judgement on the utility of the debt) they are livid.

lmao Newt, how naive. The class that has suffered and shrunk the most are the job creators? Please.

Rabbit..unfortunately I think yours, while ultimately be proven right, is a generational solution. With the Dimocrat strategy to get as many people dependent upon them as possible having reached the tipping point of over 50%, I think we are looking at decades at best of this kind of mentality in the nation.

Personally I think the Dims were counting on the inherent racism of blacks to get Obama voted in. Having that voting block locked in, this was their opportunity to bleed money out of the middle class to get their hooks into them. That way their fear approach would work in getting people to vote in their own interests. Get them hooked on govt money, they will vote for the govt money party. I think the past 4 years lack of progress and decrease in the middle class was intentional.

R – I’ve been spending the weekend with our programmer, upgrading our sites and working on getting more search engine traffic. Learned a potful, including that you’re getting popular! I’m showing you on Google PageRank at 3. Pretty good for a blog. I see the blog evolving, too, toward a more diverse group of posters. Good stuff.

Noah – you and I will get skewered for saying it, but it is the truth: there is no explanation for the statistically nearly impossible black voting pattern, except racism. None. Funny, after seeing white folks’ being crucified for decades, to see the shoe on the other foot, isn’t it?

DR@59: Agree. Last I read, the young folks in this country are assuming an overwhelmingly libertarian POV.

Generally happens after they get their first paycheck and see how little of what they earn that they actually receive. I remember it well; I was livid when I saw how much of my check went to the govt. Still feel the same way.

And the trend continues. The full time job soon to be a thing of the past. Remember, when you raise taxes on business, this raises prices for you. Business has already determined what their acceptable profits are. Raising taxes does not change their profits, it increases their expenses, which is passed on to us, the consumer. So when you are out there celebrating the rich being taxed more, what you really are celebrating is the increased cost of everyday items you buy. You are limiting the ability of the business to hire and to pay their employees a good wage.

Noah, so what? None of those businesses have a monopoly on my business or anyone else’s. Neither is their food anything special, I think they need our business worse than we need them. Headed back to Darfur anytime soon?

Newt….what the hell are you trying to articulate? Yeah…the food sucks. But those are jobs. And important ones. The kind that got my wife through college. It doesn’t even concern you in the least that Obamacare might cost jobs? And why are you talking about the Sudan? I don’t get it.

I suspect you will slink off soon….kind of like you did after the first debate.

You can only regurgitate stuff you read about Romney for so long. I really don’t see much from you other then links that are shallow in nature. Perhaps that shallow shit needs to be tossed around during the silliness of a campaign. But, America is hurting. 7.9 percent unemployment. Shrugging off companies cutting hours…..damn…..

Actually, most of those restaurants cited in Noah’s fb link HAVE been practicing that policy for decades. They always manage labor that way. I worked restaurants in high school and college. My wife and youngest daughter have also plenty of restaurant experience. Most do not offer full-time work to anyone but managers. 30 hours was generally all one could get in a work week, and they always made sure to have enough people to assure they did not need to work anyone full-time, and for sure never overtime. They have always done that to keep from paying benefits. It comes with the territory. Anyone that does work those jobs knows it. Often they work in more than one establishment if one needs more income. It is probably NOT a result of Obamacare, but does make a good story.

Poolman is absolutely correct almost all restaurants offer part time work only, all this nonsense is just another attempt at blackmail. Well guess what, even Republican politicians are now blocking out your noise. They don’t want to lose another election. Obama Care is the law of the land, deal with it.

The biggest problem we have right now is unemployment, why did the House kill President Obama’s job bill. And no the answer to the problem is not another tax cut for the wealthiest 1%. Worrying about those billionaires has been your Party’s main priority, what changed? Lose an election? Quit with the games!

I don’t want to see my government create jobs. I want to see them get out the way so we can create our own wealth and worth. Get our focus back here in communities where it needs to be instead of where the big corporate billionaires make the most buck for their bang. Take down these criminals in power. If we’re any kind of nation of laws. Don’t let them step down and pardon their crimes. We need justice to begin in the upper levels. Let’s get back to rule according to the constitution and uphold states rights.

Stay home and teach your kids. The job is too important.

Do we sell soda in public schools? Should be a crime. American fare is a ticking time bomb. People bitch about the FLOTUS going on a nutrition campaign, hell, look at our populace. We look pretty shitty for being the most advanced nation ever. I think somebody’s been duped, and plenty are doped, and it was definitely by design.

I did. I am. My plan is in place, executing nicely. So is the rest of the world’s, as American-trained physicians open boutique medical outposts in India, South America and other places, where a quad coronary bypass is $8000, thanks to low taxes, regulations, and non-existent malpractice suits. With airline tickets, you are looking about 10K, tops.

You stick to your gub’ment Obamacare and talk to me in five years; we’ll see how YOU like it .

And by the way, since I closed my practice, my taxes should be near zero this year. Fund your Obamacare with that. You see, it’s not theoretical, as many on the Left like to believe; it is very, very real.

Enjoy the fruits of your labors, collectivists, as one Atlas after another, tired of holding up YOUR world, shrugs.

Rutherford – I just finished “It’s Even Worse Than it Looks,” a book about the complete dysfunction of Congress. Don’t bother; it’s basically a shallow diatribe against the Republicans. I don’t mind the diatribe part, the shallow I object to.

I’m now working on “Rule and Ruin,” what appears to be a VERY well-researched book on the evolution of the Republican party, primarily since the late ’50s, and its transformation from the party of moderation to the little monster we see today. Really, really good. I don’t know if you have a Kindle or an iPad, but that’s the way to go to get good books really cheap. Let me whet your appetite with a little quote:

“There remain millions of voters who define themselves as moderate Republicans, and millions more who would vote for moderate Republican candidates if they could find them. But the complete domination of the conservative infrastructure in party politics, and the absence of moderate efforts to counter grassroots movements like the Tea Party, means that the GOP has for all intents and purposes become a uniformly idealogical party unlike any that has ever existed in american history.”

“That you need to go to a third world country to practice medicine the way you want to is fine with me.”

Nobody has the slightest interest in what is “fine with” you. I will find it amusing, however, to watch you fund your dreams with – well, nothing. Maybe your messiah can do that bread and fish trick again.

Thanks PFesser, we have some things we agree on. Some of you wonder why, I am dissecting the election, I happen to believe a two-party electorate is healthy for the country and if you continue with the nonsense your party will cease to exist. Numerous fringe parties are not the answer.

I have another theory. I think your party has duped the public, and that now that they are on the take, short of becoming like you, the Republican party can no longer prevail until things get so bad the public wakes up. Take your “win”. You deserve everything that is coming to you. If curiosity gets your goat, just watch Greece. They are us in 10 years.

That was a good article, Newt. Pretty much sums up my feelings regarding today’s GOP. It’s no wonder many of us distance ourselves from them. But many of us don’t find comfort with the other alternative in this two party country. Right now I think the GOP’s stupid is the main reason the Dems have been somewhat successful.

Rutherford always cracks me up. He points to austerity in Europe and says, “those guys don’t seem to enjoy it much”. No shit?

There is no way out of this without terrible hurt and pain.

Obviously austerity by definition causes pain. That’s not what I’m talking about. Are the European countries adopting austerity seeing an improvement in their economies? If the answer is no, then they are suffering for nothing.

And by the way, tough decisions that lead us out of harm’s way DO contribute to one’s legacy, not sacrifice it. Why do you think Obama’s legacy only involves shiny objects? In my piece, I ask Obama to attack jobs AND the deficit.

Rupert Murdoc and others said Romney should clean house last June, but he didn’t listen. He should have.

I almost wrote a post about this back when it was relevant but since my advice to Republicans gets hammered here all the time, I didn’t bother.

But consider this James (and BTW you are absolutely right), Romney had an adviser introduce the etch-a-sketch meme which got exploited by the opposition. Romney had an adviser tell a bunch of reporters to kiss his ass. Romney had a spokesperson advocate the MA health care solution for the whole country. At every turn, Romney’s staff screwed him over via their own incompetence. For someone who supposedly loves to fire people, Mitt didn’t fire a single one of them.

Just in. from the most transparent administration in history. Obama withheld Food Stamp numbers until after the election. 421,000 NEW food stamp claims were added last month. WTG Libs, you voted for this.

Also in, 59 precincts in Philadelphia did not get one vote for Romney. Just in case you ever want to complain about racism ever again, you have lost that right. Racism has never been higher, only difference is it is the black people who are the most racist group in this country bar none.

I believe there are more of us who enjoy your blog but will not venture into this hell hole. I commend you for patience and wish you well if you continue with the blog.

Just a Lurker, thanks for taking the time to comment. Yes, I’ve been doing this for five years and for most of that time the comments section has resembled Dante’s Inferno. It’s a balancing act. On the one hand I enjoy the back and forth with my “regular patrons” but on the other hand I hope that folks who don’t like the “heat” will still stop by to read the articles, even if they don’t comment on them.

For reasons I don’t completely understand, a pack of loons pursued the presidency this year. Maybe the credible candidates just didn’t want to take a crack at an incumbent? In 2016, look to see Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, Paul Ryan and Chris Christie all go for the gold. That will be a VERY different horse race from the crazy circus we witnessed this year.

So the FBI is pissed. They expected the CIA Chief to get canned right away. He wasn’t. I no longer just smell a rat, I see one. The one I smell is bigger.

What I heard on the tube this morning is that the FBI LOATHES the CIA. This Petraeus take down is complicated and not without political motivation IMHO. I’m just not ready to jump to conclusions yet about who was motivated to do what and for what reason.

The amazing thing is they seem to have been actually ‘in love’ with Romney and Ryan.

They were never in love with Romney right up to election day. They were in love with the prospect of booting Obama. The first debate gave them all an adrenalin rush and they thought their imperfect vessel could pull it off. They were wrong.

I would assume the FBI works the same way as the CIA in this regard, no one including the President is told anything unless they have a need to know. And of course only the persons responsible for the investigation even know about it within the organization.

PF thanks for the SEO stats. WordPress tells me how many hits I get per day. Nothing for HuffPo to worry about but probably as good or better than some other amateur bloggers like me (my true peers). Then again, a hefty percentage of the hits is you guys reloading the page 50 times a day. :-)

.Rutherford….do you feel jobs at chain restaurants are better off gone?

Of course not. We need every job that can put some food on the table.

I’m struggling with cause and effect. For example, several companies basically threatened their employees in the last four weeks of the campaign that if Romney didn’t win, they would lose their jobs. A real underhanded way of coercing a vote out of their employees.

Obamacare hasn’t gone full throttle yet and I would not be at all surprised to see some legislative tweaking by the time it goes full tilt in 2014. I always viewed it as a start, not the end.

We live in strange times. I wouldn’t put it past certain biz owners to commit corporate suicide just to make a political point.

Rutherford – I just finished “It’s Even Worse Than it Looks,” a book about the complete dysfunction of Congress. Don’t bother;

I’m still reading it (I have it on my iPhone.) I beg to differ. What I’ve read so far is quite good, especially the history of one Newt Gingrich.

These guys aren’t partisan hacks, PF. They are objective analysts who are telling you something you don’t want to hear … that the blame for gridlock is NOT equally shared by Republicans and Democrats. Republicans ARE mostly to blame.

Rabbit you are a piece of work. The top spy in the country compromises himself following the call of his dick and all you can think about is what did Obama know and when did he know it. Would you PLEASE run for national office or something cos lawdy knows you belong right down there in Washington next to Lindsay Graham.

You want something else to fume about while you’re doing your usual Obama-bashing? Why did the Chair of the Senate intelligence committee learn about this from the f*cking TV reports, when Eric Cantor in the House already knew about it and supposedly reported it to House intelligence officials? The two chambers can’t talk to each other?

Here’s something else for you cos I know you don’t have time to read or listen to the actual stories behind this stuff … you just rant off headlines. How ’bout the idea that anyone who has a buddy in the FBI can get anyone else investigated for sending threatening emails? What constitutes a real threat? What constitutes FBI harassment? What constitutes violation of civil liberties?

You see, if you get your obsessed mind off Obama for two f*cking seconds, there’s loads more for you to be legitimately concerned about.

Dude…I agree…that is a great question. How could Cantor know and not Obama?

No way. I had a security clearance. I know a tiny bit about the intelligence community myself. I’m telling you, it’s laughable. No fucking way.

This timeline stinks to high heaven and you know it. I sense you smell the rat too. You’re just trying to figure out if you should care or not.

Either the President knew the C.I.A. Chief was comprimised or he didn’t. Take your pick, they’re both fucked up.

This shit gets put out there after the election but before the slated testimony? Come on man.

Take in mind that President Transparency (does he even go with that anymore?) already stonewalled us after we found out America armed the fucking Cartel!

And now, after two weeks of the administration lying to America that the slaying of a U.S Ambassador on 911 was spontaneous….we get this weirdness? And don’t give me that Rose Garden bull shit. I watched every single Press Sec Spin Session with my jaw dropped. They didn’t claim the jury was still out. They were armed to the teeth with a false narrative. ( one that infuriates me because it blames the 1st amendment). You don’t have the Ambassador to the U.N run on every Sunday morning talk show like a chicken with her head cut off if they didn’t desperately want America to buy some poppycock…if only for a few weeks.

I expect you to get emotional over this. Blame me for reading headlines ( not true at all) or simply get upset that Im picking on your hero. At least you have some questions. Did you read what Newt said? Ha ha.

Lastly, about Corporate America. These times must really be crazy. Because you are now taking 4 years of your incessant whining about Corporate America and flipping it on its head: Corporate America no longers cares about the bottom dollar. Yeah. That’s the ticket. Ideologues.

Distractions. Petraeus and Hillary won’t be testifying. I guess along with their lifelong get-out-of-jail-free card they get a testimony pass. Their underlings will be there in their stead. What major arms contractor do you think Betrayus will hire on with? Yeah, we’re a nation that respects law. :roll: But hey, we’d never kill our own to advance an agenda. Never.

BTW, just for grins, if anyone successfully contacts Gorilla at the address he gave, could you just tell me. I say this because it’s not the address I have for him and I’m curious if he set up a new one or if in his despairing post, he typo’d his email address. ;-) (i.e. the one he gave is close to the one I know but not exactly it).

Newt most of the hearings I’ve heard about will be closed door which means no C-SPAN eavesdropping.

Poolman there are folks calling for Petraeus to testify, if not this week then sometime in the near future. I’m pretty sure Lindsay Graham and Peter King (in the House) want to hear Petraeus and not someone further down the ladder.

On a side note … ain’t it wild that everyone, and I mean everyone involved in this scandal … Petraeus, Broadwell, Kelly, are all married. Broadwell has two young kids. Talk about a lot of collateral damage. Damn!

“I’m still reading it (I have it on my iPhone.) I beg to differ. What I’ve read so far is quite good, especially the history of one Newt Gingrich.
These guys aren’t partisan hacks, PF. They are objective analysts who are telling you something you don’t want to hear … that the blame for gridlock is NOT equally shared by Republicans and Democrats. Republicans ARE mostly to blame.”

It’s not their criticism of the ReBiblicans; as you well know, it would be hard to criticise them more than I have – it’s that there is no new thought in there. They claim to be objective, but it’s just a litany of complaints from the left’s complaint list, and their suggestions for changing things are the same shopworn platitudes that the Left has been spouting for decades. My problem is not that they are “objective analysts” telling me something I don’t want to hear; my problem is that the whole book comprises intellectually lazy and shoddy workmanship.

The other book I’m reading now, “Rule and Ruin,” is head and shoulders above it, and equally or more critical of the GOP, if that makes you feel better. Let me give you another quote:

“(In the early ’60s, the smallest Republican faction) was the group that Americans know as conservatives today: militant economic, social, and cultural right-wingers, anti-government in rhetoric if not always in practice……..They were the only Republican tribe that had a sense of themselves as an ideologically coherent movement, and their sense of heroic embattlement was enhanced by their opponents’ tendency to view them as not merely wrong but insane. (sound familiar?)….The conservatives in turn saw the moderates and progressives not as misguided brethren but as traitors to be destroyed. (also sound familiar?).

Selwyn Duke of American Thinker wrote that Obama may have stolen the election. He cites odd voting patterns.anectdotes, voting machine glitches which changed Romney to Obama votes, surpressed military votes and The Columbus Dispatch’s estimates that one out of five registered Ohio voters is probably inelegible to vote. Two Ohio counties have more registered voters than voting age population.

Its probably a conspiracy theory worthy of Poolman, but voter ID would prevent such flights of fancy.

I earlier wrote that Republicans should support a form of immigrant amnesty while closing the borders as a way of gaining Hispanic favor. They would be penalized for cheating, but in time, they might become eligable for citizenship. Charles Krauthamer advocated roughly the same.

I’m starting to get the vibe there is an underworld of groupies hot for military brass. Funny. I don’t remember the U.S.O hooking us enlisted up with a peace of ass. Chicks…they love to fuck power. Even if its a skeletor with a bad comb over.

Betsy’s page wrote: “If Paula Broadwell was such a brilliant West Point grad writing a PhD dissertation, why did she have a ghost writer for her book?

The whole story seems to be getting odder and odder. Now we have an FBI agent sending shirtless photos of himself to Jill Keiley, the woman who originally reported the anonymous emails that she was receiving. If those were plot details in a movie, the audience would b rolling on the floor laughing.”

Meanwhile, the Daily Caller reports a woman ran her husband over with her car because he didn’t vote, and thus helped Obama win.

I read this in a time line on Salon.com, “October 27, 2012 – House Majority Leader Eric Cantor gets a call from an FBI employee notifying him of the affair. Congressman Dave Reichert arranges the call after receiving a tip from another FBI official.”
Dave Reichert was the former sheriff of King County, Washington and before that the long time lead investigator on the ‘Green River Killer’ task force, so I am thinking, Reichert heard from the FBI agent because of their past work together. It seems to me that that the FBI or the FBI agent might handled this situation better, but I’ll reserve my opinion until the entire story surfaces. If it were not for any possible cloak and dagger activity, it is pretty much a non story. That women are attracted to powerful men and men are vulnerable to attractive women is no surprise to any of us.

This was already posted earlier in the thread but goddammit I am posting it again. One great f*cking article by a multi-generational American as apple pie white guy to the party that wants his vote exclusively. Damn this was a good read!!!!

I think the photo came from central casting to front for the real writer, a St Louis Democratic committeeman. That alleged man has an advanced degree in science and yet his understanding of weather and climate is as rudimentary as a fifth grader’s.

If you like, I can produce a similar screed from a young black man who’s family lives in poverty while espousing country club Republican ideology. Then, you can post a photo of an attractive back family. Or, I can write the article from the prospective of an Hispanic person.

It may be entertaining, but you don’t really believe that person exists, do you?

Thanks, Newt. I’d have more respect for him if he was as my snarky guess made him to be–a Democratic operative. I believe he exists but I now know he is an ignorant fool instead of someone purposely mocking old stereotypes..

He still did not support the point Rutherford was trying to make.It doesn’t matter if he exists or not. Now, I feel sorry for his family.

It hurts me to say this (cos I know ya’ll will just pelt me with emotion), but this whole Petraeus diversion may be happening now to cover for the Syria/Israel/Cast Lead II campaign. How much of the media is following the banking industry’s money laundering and interest rigging crimes? These scandals are generally well-played through the media by those who own the media and want to keep us focused on the play, while the real MANipulation™ goes on behind the scenes. If it can, it will and does control us.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

James, you don’t believe that white boy is telling the truth? I have no problem accepting his words as sincere. You may not agree, but I think he’s right. As they say, the proof’s in the pudding. He did say he voted for Gary Johnson. I’m certainly not that white, being half Italian, but share his basic POV.

Poolman, wasn’t it you who posted the article suggesting that men like Petraeus are undone by Israeli’s all the time who send in their Mata Hari’s to throw them off their game? I think it was called the Honey Pot trap or some such thing as that?

I hate to say this, but have you guys seen Petraeus’ wife? She totally let herself go.

I hate to say this, but do any of you believe this is the FIRST time David cheated on the Mrs in 37 years? I have to wonder if we have a Tiger Woods with a hankering for killing terrorists.

I haven’t read the latest comments yet so maybe someone has already gone here but we need to stop this “Petraeus resigned out of a sense of honor”. Pure bullsh*t. Petraeus was fired. His boss, Clapper, told him he “should resign” which in the real world is equivalent to being fired. Mofo didn’t confess squat until he got caught (typical adultery scenario) and would be sitting pretty today as head of CIA with some woo-woo on the side if girlfriend hadn’t gone nutso on “hostess” Jill Kelly.

Folks with some serous responsibilities are playing high school boyfriend girlfriend shenanigans. Truly stranger than fiction. I’ll have more to say in a post tomorrow (I hope … if I can just get around to it.)

I disagree Rutherford, I think it is quite possible this was Petraeus first dalliance, not because I think he was immune to attractive women, but because I think his career was that important to him. And yes I do believe he resigned, as head of the CIA, he served at the pleasure of the President. No one else could in effect fire him. That he said, the affair began after (two months after) came to the CIA cleared up one thing for me. I wondered how he passed his lie detector test. In fact I was beginning to wonder if he somehow did not have to clear the same hurdles as other hires of the agency. So I am more or less still confident of the hiring processes in the intelligence field. Now that it is out in the open, it is conceivable he could be rehired.

Newt, my sense of humor is an aquirred taste. ‘l take your comment as a complement.

Poolman, I tend to agree with you. The timing makes me suspicious.

No, I don’t believe White Boy is telling the truth. For one thing, he used racism and nativsm to establish himself as the gold standard of Republican membership. Such a disappointed Republican was in a local campaign ad.

If I told you I was a live-long Democrat who voted for Rose Ann Barr because Obama is to the right of Nixon on health care, would you believe me?

I served on a base which had one of the highest suicide and alcholism rates in the command. The stress level was high, and so was the rate of extramarital affairs. I am not surprised.

James, I should have made it clear from my “firing” comment that I knew the whole “I like firing people” comment was taken out of context. He was saying that the beauty of the free market is that you don’t have to do business with folks who don’t meet your needs.

Starting to wonder if Romney did lose. There was massive voter fraud everywhere! Check out a few websites (and this is just a start). Go though the links and see for yourself.
ObamaVoterFraud – Look at this one first.
DefendTheVote
TheProjectVeritas
ElectionLawCenter
TrueTheVote
GulagBound is starting a state by state analysis in swing states to be updated daily. Wisconsin and Florida are up. Others to follow shortly.

It’s become the norm with this President—if Congress fails to accomplish his objectives, he goes around it with executive orders and federal regulations. He’s doing it again. Congress did not pass the Cybersecurity Act of 2012 before the election, so the President has issued a draft of an executive order to put much of that legislation in place without lawmakers voting.

You know usually I can put my finger on why I find someone obnoxious but I just can’t do it with Julie from the video Poolman posted. She’s put out a bunch of them, and I’ve commented before on her need for a chin-job, but that still doesn’t pinpoint why I find her obnoxious. Is it the voice? I dunno. Believe it or not, it’s not the ideology. Heck I could watch SE Cupp fire off conservative dogma all day. For some reason, I’m just not that into Julie.

Isn’t it convenient that Petraeus’s buddy says David started sleeping with Broadwell AFTER he left active duty? From what I hear, if he was noodling her while in the service, that opens him up to a court martial. Does anyone really believe with all the access she had to him that the nasty didn’t happen until he was a civilian?

Court martial is a pretty big downer to any career soldier’s libido. When you’ve made 4 stars and your pension is at stake, I’d say he kept it zipped, but now that the affair is out in the open, I would say, who, besides his wife and her husband, really care.

166. Its almost as if they were following a script. Now, we hear the possibllity that the Obama administration blackmailed Petraeous into providing the movie tape excuse to Congress. This script has everything but a love child…so far.

This is how it matters. Petreus was exchanging e mails and other things during a crucial time of his tenure in the CIA. Did this romance attract enough of his attention to hurt the leader’s job performance?

Why did he tell Congress a movie was the cause of the attack when other sources had already confirmed it as a terrorist attack. Was it a sign of his preoccupation with Broadwell and how to save his skin, or did other factors influence his testimony?

Broadwell said some Libyan prisoners were being held temporarily at the counselate. and someone later denied her statement. Did the General share classified information with his parimore?

INCEST!? it escaped me, Rutherford. That is a wonderful addition to the drama. Broadwell seems to be an impressive woman.

If high taxes was their only concern, black families earning $250,000 per year would also tend to be Republicans for their self interest. Since such people are 3

INCEST!? That escaped me. The play is even better with that twist. Someone has to make a movie about this some day.

Newt, only about 3% of the population earns $250,000 or more. Thus their numbers are too small to represent the Republican norm. My guess is if taxes were their only concern, blacks who earn over $250.000 also are Republicans because of economic self interest.. Our son and daughter in law know many exceptions to the rule.

This is how it matters. Petreus was exchanging e mails and other things during a crucial time of his tenure in the CIA. Did this romance attract enough of his attention to hurt the leader’s job performance?

It goes beyond this James. From what I have read, the info on Patreaus predates his time in the CIA. They knew about this affair when he was being vetted for the job and gave it to him anyway. I think this will turn out to be a passive scandal for EVERYONE involved.

Your theory works James, if people and voters are all in just for one issue. We are all more complex than that. I doubt Noah has any facts to prove his some of points, but actually he would be right, if Patreaus was forthcoming about his relationship Ms Broadwell, he could have still been confirmed. The CIA are realists, they know no one is a saint.
Incest? Now all of you have this Freudian masturbation vision. I cannot wait to hear what PFesser has to say about that.

Check out Obama’s Executive Order #141. Passed on Oct 26, and no one in the MSM reported on it. The DHS now has an armed police force. Our federal government is now arming against its own people. Obama has kept his promise to have a civilian security force.

I was using your premise, Newt. “if high taxes were their only concern” is how I based my theory. I agree, people’s biases and motives are more complicated, but again, I dealt with what you gave me.

Incest doesn’t light my fire, though Oedipus Rex comes to mind.

What does energize me is the race on Sunday, some of which I saw on line. Clint Bowyer had been nudging Jeff Gordon into the wall or otherwise hurt his standing in races during the season. On Sunday, he did it again Jeff Gordon was black flagged, but he waited until Boyer came around again and sent him into the wall.

A melee broke out between the two crews and fines were heavy.

The exchange between Obama and several Republicans reminded me of that fight.

R, since your whole take was to withdraw judgement on the nature of the attack in Lybia, even citing two months as not enough time….comparing the whole thing to the Zimmerman affair…can I assume you believe that U.N. Secratery Rice did, in fact, ” besmirch” her reputation after running on the Sunday morning talk shows ( for reasons no one has explained) with the ludicrouse narrative that the slaying of the Ambassador was an ad hoc tempor tantrum by an army of stink beards with RPGs live and direct from drone video feed on 9/11?

There has to be at least some consequence for that….no? Career advancement over, in my book. I’m hoping for some obstructionism on this one. She’s either an utter moron or a loyal liar.

Our family and neighbors are well aware of Afghanistan and Iraq because our relatives and chidren’s class mates have served there.

I’m sure Newt is right, though. One reason is the press has downplayed the wars since Obama has been president. They are more acceptable when a Democrat is in the White House.

Obama acted tough when a reporter asked about Republcan promises to block any promotion for Rice. Boehner, I believe countered with they will block any promotions for people associated with the Libyan murders and they will go after the president. Rice is an errand girl who was following orders. rabbit is right.

Obama with the help of his ally Candy Crowley gleefully told Romney he was wrong during the debate. Of course, Obama had referred specifically to the attack as an act of terror the day after the attack (he really didn’t as Crowly admitted after the debate.) when we already knew Susan Rice and others were telling us the attack was a reaction to the video.

Susan Rice toured the talk shows four days after the attack and Obama’s comments. This administration is either too incompentant to lie properly or they don’t care.

R – good article by David Frum in the current issue of Newsweek. A little excerpt for your entertainment. He, by the way, considers himself a Republican:

“I can remember a Republican Party that was not backward-looking. I can remember a Republican Party excited by science and its possibilities. I can remember a Republican Party that regarded those Americans who thought differently not as aliens and enemies, but as fellow citizens who had not yet been convinced of the merit of our ideas.”

He could have been peeking into the Rutherford Lawson blog when he wrote those words, eh?

Yeah dude…..because the Dems are an absolute bastion of sound science. And they don’t get balls deep into your personal life either. They also don’t make enemies….constantly stoking the fires of class warfare.

You were talking about upping your ammo and buying another rifle, you were so concerned with the dire path Obama and the Dems intensified over the last four years. Your priorities certainly changed.

Now it’s all about you hiding who you voted for at a poltical blog, batting your eyes like some squeaky little Geisha.

None of our business you say..despite the fact you made it our business and told us exactly who you were voting for….our only crime pointing out the inconsistencies of endorsing said candidate when using your own concerns as a litmus test. Yup. Now it’s none of our business.

Why don’t you get back to insulting those with traditional values while also bitching about the lack of traditional values held by young folks.

Wow. I actually saw-cut and chipped shot-crete today. I’m dusty and beat and now on my second cervesa. Life is good. House is wide open, wife says it’s 68 degrees out. She’s heading to pick peppers.

Big push on internet freedoms by congress. Stay vigilant.

I don’t know if I mentioned the honey trap bit, Rutherford. It’s been a good tool since the beginning of time. We loves girls, at least this we certainly does. One heck of an awesome creation. Certainly a weakness and too exciting too avoid for most of us.

Rep. Ron Paul, the iconic libertarian congressman from Texas, has delivered what will most likely be his final address to Congress. In a sprawling, 52-minute speech to the House chamber, Paul lambasted U.S. government, politicians and special interests, declaring that the U.S. people must return to virtue before the government allows them to be free, and that the Constitution has failed to limit the scope of an authoritarian bureaucracy.

“Our Constitution, which was intended to limit government power and abuse, has failed,” Paul said. “The Founders warned that a free society depends on a virtuous and moral people. The current crisis reflects that their concerns were justified.”

For the retiring Republican, 77, the “current crisis” isn’t quite what it is for other members of Congress, who routinely use that word to describe the economic recession that followed the 2008 financial crash. To the Texas Republican, that’s part of it, but the causes are deeper, and it’s also a crisis of governmental authoritarianism and the vanishing of personal liberty.
“If it’s not accepted that big government, fiat money, ignoring liberty, central economic planning, welfarism, and warfarism caused our crisis, we can expect a continuous and dangerous march toward corporatism and even fascism with even more loss of our liberties,” said Paul, an obstetrician-gynecologist by training.

The problem isn’t just government’s size, but its use of force, both in starting preemptive wars and as it coerces U.S. citizens with police power. To Paul, this is the fault of Americans who no longer prioritize liberty, and it will lead to the unraveling of orderly society unless people change.

“Restraining aggressive behavior is one thing, but legalizing a government monopoly for initiating aggression can only lead to exhausting liberty associated with chaos, anger and the breakdown of civil society,” Paul said. “We now have a standing army of armed bureaucrats in the TSA, CIA, FBI, Fish and Wildlife, FEMA, IRS, Corp of Engineers, etc., numbering over 100,000 civil society.”

More than coercive, to Paul the government is also corrupt: “All branches of our government today are controlled by individuals who use their power to undermine liberty and enhance the welfare/warfare state-and frequently their own wealth and power,” he said.

Throughout his speech, Paul questioned not only the fundamental health of America’s social compact, but specifics like fiat money, the power of the Federal Reserve, the PATRIOT Act, Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act modifications, undeclared war, the illegalization of medical marijuana, mandatory sentencing requirements for drug crimes, the illegalization of hemp, TSA searches, federal debt and borrowing, the White House’s authority to assassinate those it declares terrorists, the legalization of detaining U.S. citizens for national-security purposes, the political power of AIPAC, and the regulation of light bulbs and toilets in people’s homes.

For Paul, the list of grievances is long, and he might not have accomplished much in Congress: “In many ways, according to conventional wisdom, my off-and-on career in Congress, from 1976 to 2012, accomplished very little,” he said. “No named legislation, no named federal buildings or highways, thank goodness. In spite of my efforts, the government has grown exponentially, taxes remain excessive, and the prolific increase of incomprehensible regulations continues. Wars are constant and pursued without congressional declaration.”

In thinking about the champions of liberty, his lesson is a bitter one: “History has shown that the masses have been quite receptive to the promises of authoritarians which are rarely if ever fulfilled,” but his prescription is hopeful.

Paul left the podium, for the last time, offering an “answer” to all of these problems: that people should choose liberty and limit government, and seek change within themselves.

“The number one responsibility for each of us is to change ourselves with hope that others will follow,” Paul said, urging an end to two motives that have hindered U.S. society: envy and intolerance.

“I have come to one firm conviction after these many years of trying to figure out the plain truth of things. The best chance for achieving peace and prosperity, for the maximum number of people worldwide, is to pursue the cause of liberty. If you find this to be a worthwhile message, spread it throughout the land.”

“If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, as our current President plans, I will have no choice but to reduce the size of this company. Rather than grow this company I will be forced to cut back.”

Most billionaires run businesses which produce jobs. Money they spend privately also creates jobs.They can take care of themselves by moving to countries with lower taxes. Rich and middling business people are now fleeing France to escape the new socialist government, for example.

Small businesspeople have less flexibility, and they cope by hiring fewer employees or going out of business. Obama’s policies are contributing to our high unemployment rate and many unemployed are asking “how ever will (we) feed our children?”

Rabbit, was Colin Powell an utter moron or liar when he told the UN that there were WMD’s?

This is no different. Susan Rice told the press what she had been fed by the CIA. The CIA is up to its nose in this mess and dollars to donuts if anyone ends up getting disciplined it will be someone in intelligence.

You have one valid question. Why Susan Rice? She had nothing to do with Benghazi so why did the White House offer her up as spokeswoman? Maybe it was some form of plausible deniability? Since all the facts were not known yet, they might have felt she was the best person to put forth with incomplete information.

The worst you can say about Rice is she was duped, just like Powell was years earlier …. and he’s STILL pissed about it.

Rutherford, the difference between Colin Powell and Susan Rice is that when Powell made his statement it was based on the conclusions of most major intelligence agencies and also leading Democrats in the United Sates.

Past history showed that Hussein’s government possessed and had used weapons of mass destruction,. Saddam was also convincing rivals the weapons existed to protect himself.

Susan Rice was either ignorant as she parroted the line Obama fed her, or she knew the truth and prostituted herself for the administration. The facts were already apparent when she misspoke to the talk shows.

If she is nominated, I will call my representatives each day to oppose appointing that ignorant woman or political whore to any office. Four men died, and an unknown number of Libyans were put at risk.

I agree with LIndsay Graham. Obama postured to make himself look macho and to portray opposition to Rice as a continued war on women. Graham had no other choice but to react. I hope he and the others keep their backbones straight and go after Obama.

Obama tried to take sole credit for killing Ossama bin ladin. Now, the shoe is on the other foot, and given his standards, Obama is responsible for betraying men under his command and lying about it.

Had he been willing to share the credit of the murder, I might have felt more charitable, bot he didn’t and I’m not.

I have no feelings one way or the other about Frum.

McCain had good reason not to like Obama. I don’t remember the details. McCain lined up a group of Senators to sign a letter discussing risks with the housing market, I think.

Obama promised to sign, but he broke his promise. McCain followed with an angry statement. It was a precursor to Obama’s later behavior.

Yeah, the Powell analogy is way off mark. I will say this, the bad intel over Iraq, though obviously not a lie for sake of lame ass political spin, was a hundred times more damaging to America. Bush started a war on a false pretense, one that I feel wasn’t needed in the first place. There is no down playing the damage to our credibility.

The point of Rutherford’s comment was independent of WDS or Libya. It concerned the relative strength of information sources. Rice’s was already disintegrating when Obama sent her out.

There were several comments about third or even fifth parties in the link. That part of the discussion is a bad idea. France and Italy, for example, have multiple parties, and over the years, they have created serious problems.

First Dimension illustrates social media caused changes in the world. Simon Cowell suggested they sing as a group when they auditioned for the Uk version of X Factor. Now, they are international stars.

Smitten girls from many parts of the world are recording flash mobs and fan videos to persuade their heroes to perform in their home countries. The interesting feature is all of them know English, dress alike and live in homes similar to ours. A uniform youth culture is super imposing itself on local cultures.

Well of course he does Newt. As Obama’s senior adviser Valerie Jarrett said: “After we win this election, it’s our turn. Payback time. Everyone not with us is against us and they better be ready because we don’t forget. The ones who helped us will be rewarded, the ones who opposed us will get what they deserve. There is going to be hell to pay.”

hello, everyone–I dropped by to wish all a happy Thanksgiving and see how people were after the election. I am disappointed but have faith that this will work out for the best.

I see that Noah continues to lie. The quotation he attributes to Valerie Jarrett has been completely debunked. It was attributed to an anonymous source who supposedly heard another anonymous source attribute it to someone who worked for Jarrett–not Jarrett herself. Even very conservative bloggers have acknowledged that this is bogus. Yet Noah continues to spread it and to then try to plug the square peg of actions into the round hole of something that never was said.

I’m preoccupied tonight, because I am working on an article which must be finished this weekend.I have to disagree with something. Otherwise, what would be the point?

However, I also agree with much of the article. I do know some of the reasons our economy crashed, and I know Obama is a socialist. He joined and or was allied with the New Party in Iliniois during the late 1990’s.

For reasons stated earlier a third common sense party would be a bad idea. Better that people ihfiltrate a party and change it from the inside as the Tea Party did to Republicans and the New Left changed the Democrats.

Newt, seriously….you are a human bumper sticker machine…..I honestly have never read anything from you. 20 second quips. Links. So boring. You remind me of this person who used to post here named Elric.